I have an important announcement about the future of the NLSC. Our current host will be closing their hosting services as of July 7th, so we've been making preparations to move to a new home before that happens. I'm pleased to say that we have made the necessary arrangements, and will be moving to a new server in the near future. There will be some downtime while this happens, but everything will be moving across. I'll try to keep everyone informed as best as possible, via the NLSC Facebook and Twitter accounts.

To keep doing what we're doing - specifically, providing a Downloads section with upload facilities - the NLSC requires dedicated hosting. Until now, we have received such hosting in exchange for advertising space, which has been a very generous offer to say the least. Unfortunately, there aren't any deals like that on the table these days, so we are now paying for our own hosting.

Because dedicated hosting is more expensive, and we have been a non-profit website for close to twenty years now, after much thought and consideration, I've decided to ask the community for assistance with our hosting costs. At present, we're looking to raise at least $100 USD per month, which would allow us to cover hosting costs, and put some money towards things like giveaways and content creation.

Let me stress before I go any further: we will not be charging for content! We can't legally charge for mods (so we certainly won't be), download and upload facilities will still be free, registration for the Forum will be free, and all our articles and other content will be free. We will not be providing premium content behind a paywall, or making any other sweeping changes. We just need some help paying the bills, because our modding community requires some facilities that we just can't offer if we're on cheaper, shared hosting.

Basically, if we can get twenty people donating at least $5 USD per month, we'll be able to cover our expenses. As I said, should the community's generosity extend beyond that, I have plans to use those funds for things like monthly giveaways, and new content.

If you're willing and able to support us, you can do so through Patreon or GoFundMe. I understand the controversy in making an appeal like this, but I do not want to see us go off the air, or lose important features such as our Downloads section and its upload facilities.

On behalf of the NLSC Team, I thank you for your consideration, any contributions you are willing and able to make, and your continued support of everything we do here. Once again, I will try to keep everyone informed about the impending move, which hopefully shouldn't cause too much of an interruption. I realise that some of you may have some further questions that need concise answers, so please see below for more information. Also, a huge thanks to our current host for all the support, and essentially saving us some eight years ago when we needed to find a new home.

NLSC Server Move & Hosting Fund FAQ

Why are you moving?

Our host will be discontinuing their hosting services as of July 7th, 2016. If we want to stick around and not lose anything, we need to move well ahead of that date, so that's what we're doing.

When will you be moving?

Before the end of June 2016, so within a few days of this announcement.

Will the NLSC be offline during the move?

Yes, there will be some downtime; hopefully, not for too long. We'll try to keep everyone informed as best we can, through our Facebook and Twitter pages.

Why are you asking for donations?

We are asking the community to help us out in paying for the new hosting. Our previous hosting agreement gave us free hosting in exchange for advertising space. Deals like that just don't exist these days, so we must now pay for hosting ourselves.

Why can't you just pay for it yourselves?

For twenty years, the NLSC has been a non-profit website. We don't have content behind a paywall, or fees for any facilities that we provide, which would normally cover things like hosting costs. We want to keep providing those facilities free of charge, but we need to explore avenues to cover the costs without being out of pocket. One of those avenues is crowdfunding/support.

Will you be charging for any content or facilities?

No! We will not be putting any of our content behind a paywall, charging for registrations or downloads, or anything like that. We want to keep doing what we've been doing with as little change or interruption as possible. We just need some help paying for the services that will allow us to do that.

So, nothing will change?

The only possible changes might be that we require users to register an account to download files, but that's something that's been considered even before this move. Either way, you would not have to pay to register an account, and you would not have to pay to download files. Our plan is to keep doing what we're doing; we just have to move to new hosting, and pay for it ourselves.

How can I contribute?

You can support us with monthly contributions on Patreon, or you can make donations via GoFundMe.

What if I can't afford to contribute (or contribute monthly)?

That's OK! We're hoping a few generous members of our community can help us out, but we don't expect everyone to dig deep and donate. We hope you'll keep supporting us by simply continuing to visit the site and enjoy your time here.

Similarly, if a once-off donation is all you can afford, we still very much appreciate that. Every little bit helps!

Why did you choose that amount for GoFundMe?

GoFundMe requires a goal amount to be entered. We've chosen an amount with a high ceiling, in the event that we can raise enough money to keep covering hosting costs for years to come, as we want to be around for a while yet.

Why is the GoFundMe amount in Australian Dollars?

The funding is being handled by NLSC Webmaster/Administrator Andrew Begley, who is located in Australia. More information on exchange rates can be found here.

Are there any rewards for backers?

We're looking into offering some kind of rewards for community members who generously donate to help with our hosting costs. At present, we're intending to give backers who have registered Forum accounts a badge, the ability to change their username colour, and the ability to set a custom title (if they haven't already qualified for it). We'll also be looking at other ways to show our appreciation, which we'll reveal once they can be arranged, as well as explore the possibility of early access, special content, etc, for different tiers of patrons on Patreon.

I don't like that you're doing this. I'm not going to support the NLSC anymore.

We're sorry to hear that. We understand the controversy of asking for donations, but we also feel that we've been around a long time and supported the basketball video game community well, so it's not out of bounds to ask the community for some support in return; especially as it's being done in order to pay for services that will benefit the community. This is the first time we're asking for donations in the twenty years we've been around, and it's not a decision that we made lightly. If you still feel that we're acting inappropriately despite all that, then that's your call to make. We certainly hope that most people will understand.

Can I make a donation to you directly, eg. via PayPal?

Yes, if you would prefer. Please email andrew@nba-live.com for more information if you would like to arrange that. Thank you for your support!

Our server move is not yet complete, but due to a couple of hold-ups, I've reactivated the Forum and Downloads section temporarily. They will be deactivated again once we're ready to complete the move, to ensure that nothing is lost.

We're still waiting for a couple of DNS issues to sort themselves out as records update worldwide, but we're kind of up and running again, on our new home. Everything should be back to normal soon. Thanks again for your patience and understanding!